Furnace floor - same 12"  (Dawnbreed)

Red vinyl / 300

by Kris Wilson:

As has been the case since the very inception of the genre, it is often the case that the very best material that is to be found in the hole of the underground is what’s on the very floor of the global scene. Much like the forest floor with all sorts of creatures and objects that all have their own role to play in the grand scheme of it all, metal has more than enough for us to pick apart and constantly have a source for new and invigorating material should we simply be meticulous enough to find acts be they veteran or fresh. In the case of Furnace Floor, you don’t get any fresher. Yet, it is with their first step out into that dense, unforgiving forest that Furnace Floor makes for one hell of a sight. It’s already hard enough for a band to make their entrance known when they are just coming upon the scene. That’s something that can make for quite a hurdle in our current digital age, but that doesn’t stop many as that’s simply what the scene was for decades before the advent of the internet with many still able to overcome and persevere. If the three tracks of this debut ep are anything to observe, Furnace Floor is, at the very least, setting itself up to be a patient and tenacious act. Three tracks are all that adorn this eponymous demo with there not seeming to be much to be had within its almost exactly 13-minute runtime, but it’s any moment of the voracious metal that’s only display at all times here that demands you to think otherwise. Never once content in remaining within the confines of any one sound, the worlds of death and doom metal come together more often than not to make for a voraciously heavy and fiery performance that is not afraid to also borrow from the realms of black metal for extra flair and flavor where none was needed, but Furnace Floor incorporates it all expertly to deliver an overall performance that is as bombastic and interesting as it is satisfying and unrelenting unto its ending echoes. The very power that Furnace Floor wields at every given moment makes me ponder if the people behind the impeccable instrumentation and demonic vocals have previous experience elsewhere in the world of metal, but it makes no difference. Furnace Floor more than succeeds at making its entry a surprising one that is begging for expansion in due time with a voracious inquisition to match the absolute onslaught that is brought to the table here with the prospect of a future offensive something that chills me to my very bones in the absolute best way possible. To discover a fresh act like this that is emerging from the very floor of the underground is to behold something magnificent that underground connoisseurs dream of. If this initial demo has anything within it that we must learn from it is this: underestimation cannot be a fault that transpires when we consider the possibilities of Furnace Floor. Should we fail, may the flames consume us wholly and without prejudice.